Chuck Hagel: “I wish to first congratulate the bipartisan leadership in this body, the leadership of our two leaders, Senator Lott and…”

“I wish to first congratulate the bipartisan leadership in this body, the leadership of our two leaders, Senator Lott and Senator Daschle, for addressing this issue and addressing the more encompassing issue of sanctions in total. I want to also thank my friends and colleagues, Senators Biden and McConnell, for their active leadership on this issue. This is a strong first step. We need a comprehensive trade package, a comprehensive package we will talk about and address. Yes, sanctions; sanction reviews--a number of my colleagues and I have worked on this issue for the last year. We have legislation pending. Senator Lugar has been a leader in this area. We need to address the IMF issue as a Congress. We will be addressing MFN status with China and fast track. But a complete package. This is a strong first step. This is the beginning of the larger debate that this Congress will have and must have about the role of the United States in the world and how we intend to engage the world, and trade is a very important part of that.”